Posture in the real world

I’ve mentioned previously about how little our static posture relates to back pain and that it is the lack of movement that is more likely to be implicated in any issue we may have. Getting more movement into the day is crucial and Richmond Stace at the Specialist Pain Physio put it really well in these 3 points.

1. It’s not about the position you are in, it is about moving regularly and consistently through the day.

2. Think beyond the desk and chair. It’s about the person, their health, thoughts, feelings, work culture and environment as much as the physical position adpoted.

3. To change habits at work you need to raise your awareness.

To place the idea of posture in a much more dynamic and extreme context check out this video from the recent Weightlifting World Championships where Zhassulan Kydyrbaev clean and jerks 229kg.

If the lifter gets out of position he will fail the lift and may even hurt himself but he maintains pretty “good” posture and makes it for a world championship gold medal. Yet on the slow motion section you can see his lumbar spine flexes as he starts to stand up. Is this an issue? No as he has developed enough movement capacity that he can absorb this with no ill effect and this is with a weight that wold be a solid deadlift for a man of his size. So do you still think that sitting at your desk in a bit of lumbar flexion is really going to destroy your back?